Natural Gas Part 1 doc

Introduction This chapter contains a description of background of natural gas: what exactly natural gas is?, how it is formed and how it is found in nature; history of natural gas: a br

Natural Gas

edited by

Primož Potočnik

SCIYO

Statements and opinions expressed in the chapters are these of the individual contributors and not necessarily those of the editors or publisher No responsibility is accepted for the accuracy of information contained in the published articles The publisher assumes no responsibility for any damage or injury to persons or property arising out of the use of any materials, instructions, methods

or ideas contained in the book

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Technical Editor Goran Bajac

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First published September 2010

Printed in India

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Natural Gas, Edited by Primož Potočnik

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Wan Azelee Wan Abu Bakar and Rusmidah Ali

Natural gas: physical properties and combustion features 39

Le Corre Olivier and Loubar Khaled

The importance of natural gas reforming 71

Laédna Souto Neiva and Lucianna Gama

Natural gas odorization 87

Daniel Tenkrat, Tomas Hlincik and Ondrej Prokes

Synthetic Natural Gas (SNG) from coal and biomass:

a survey of existing process technologies, open issues

and perspectives 105

Maria Sudiro and Alberto Bertucco

Environmental technology assessment

of natural gas compared to biogas 127

Ola Eriksson

Natural Gas Hydrates 147

Geir Ersland and Arne Graue

The effect of H2S on hydrogen and carbon

black production from sour natural gas 163

M Javadi, M Moghiman and Seyyed Iman Pishbin

Soil gas geochemistry: significance

and application in geological prospectings 183

Nunzia Voltattorni and Salvatore Lombardi

Adsorption of methane in porous materials

as the basis for the storage of natural gas 205

Cecilia Solar, Andrés García Blanco, Andrea Vallone and Karim Sapag

Contents

Combined operational planning of natural gas

and electric power systems: state of the art 271

Ricardo Rubio-Barros, Diego Ojeda-Esteybar,

Osvaldo Añó and Alberto Vargas

Compressed natural gas direct injection (spark plug fuel injector) 289

Taib Iskandar Mohamad

Hydrogen-enriched compressed natural gas as a fuel for engines 307

Fanhua Ma, Nashay Naeve, Mingyue Wang,

Long Jiang, Renzhe Chen and Shuli Zhao

Looking for clean energy considering LNG assessment to provide energy security in Brazil and GTL from Bolivia natural gas reserves 333

Miguel Edgar Morales Udaeta, Jonathas Luiz de Oliveira Bernal,

Geraldo Francisco Burani and José Aquiles Baesso Grimoni

Practical results of forecasting for the natural gas market 371

Primož Potočnik and Edvard Govekar

Statistical model of segment-specific relationship between natural gas consumption and temperature in daily and hourly resolution 393

Marek Brabec, Marek Malý, Emil Pelikán and Ondřej Konár

Molecular dynamics simulations

of volumetric thermophysical properties of natural gases 417

Santiago Aparicio and Mert Atilhan

Static behaviour of natural gas and its flow in pipes 435

Ohirhian, P U.

Steady State Compressible Fluid Flow in Porous Media 467

Peter Ohirhian

Natural gas properties and flow computation 501

Ivan Marić and Ivan Ivek

Rarefied natural gas transport 531

Huei Chu Weng

Consequence analysis of large-scale

liquefied natural gas spills on water 549

Hideyuki Oka

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Risk assessment of marine LNG operations 571

Tarek Elsayed

Reliability measures for liquefied natural gas receiving terminal

based on the failure information of emergency shutdown system 591

Bi-Min Hsu, Ming-Hung Shu, and Min Tsao

The contributions in this book present an overview of utting edge research on natural gas which is a vital component of world’s supply of energy Natural gas is combustible mixture

of hydrocarbon gases, primarily methane but also heavier gaseous hydrocarbons such as ethane, propane and butane Unlike other fossil fuels, natural gas is clean burning and emits lower levels of potentially harmful by-products into the air Therefore, it is considered as one

of the cleanest, safest, and most useful of all energy sources applied in variety of residential, commercial and industrial fields

The book is organised in 25 chapters that are collected into groups related to technology, applications, forecasting, numerical simulations, transport and risk assessment of natural gas.The introductory chapter 1 provides a soft introduction about the background and history of natural gas, what exactly it is and where it can be found in nature, and presents an overview

of applications and technologies related to natural gas The introduction is extended in the second chapter providing the physical properties and combustion features of natural gas The next group of chapters 3-10 is related to various technological aspects of natural gas and describes the importance of natural gas reforming, its odorisation, synthetic natural gas, comparison with biogas, natural gas hydrates, thermal decomposition of sour natural gas, soil-gas geochemistry, and storage of natural gas in porous materials

Chapter 11 provides an introduction to industrial applications of natural gas and the application topics are further discussed in chapters 12-15 The relation of natural gas to electric power systems is discussed in chapter 12 The next two chapters consider engine applications, namely compressed natural gas direct injection engine and hydrogen-enriched compressed natural gas as a fuel for engines Chapter 15 discusses clean energy considerations provided

by the liquid natural gas

Two chapters are dedicated to short-term forecasting of natural gas consumption Daily and hourly forecasting models for natural gas distributors are presented in chapter 16, and statistical daily forecasting models for households and small and medium size commercial customers are discussed in chapter 17

Chapters 18-20 are concerned with numerical simulations in the field of natural gas and discuss molecular dynamics simulations of volumetric thermophysical properties of natural gases, static behaviour of natural gas and its flow in pipes, and simulations of steady state compressible flow in porous media

Preface

Chapters 21 and 22 are related to transport of natural gas and discuss natural gas properties and methods of precise flow computation, and transportation of rarefied natural gas in pipelines

The last three chapters 23-25 are concerned with risk estimation in various natural gas operations and discuss analysis of large-scale liquefied natural gas spills on water, risk assessment of marine liquid natural gas operations, and reliability measures for liquefied natural gas receiving terminal

Editor

Primož Potočnik

University of Ljubljana Ljubljana, Slovenia

Natural gas

Wan Azelee Wan Abu Bakar and Rusmidah Ali

X Natural gas

Wan Azelee Wan Abu Bakar and Rusmidah Ali

Department of Chemistry, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia,

Skudai, Johor, Malaysia

1 Introduction

This chapter contains a description of background of natural gas: what exactly natural gas

is?, how it is formed and how it is found in nature; history of natural gas: a brief history and

development of modern natural gas; resources: how much abundance, where to find and

what is the composition of natural gas; Uses: application and the important of energy

source; natural gas versus environment: emission from the combustion of natural gas;

natural gas technology: role of technology in the evolution of the natural gas industry;

Purification of crude natural gas: various technologies used to convert sour to sweet natural

gas; synthesis of artificial natural gas: methanation reaction

2 Background of Natural Gas

A mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons occurring in reservoirs of porous rock (commonly sand

or sandstone) capped by impervious strata It is often associated with petroleum, with

which it has a common origin in the decomposition of organic matter in sedimentary

deposits Natural gas consists largely of methane (CH4) and ethane (C2H6), with also

propane (C3H8) and butane (C4H10)(separated for bottled gas), some higher alkanes (C5H12

and above) (used for gasoline), nitrogen (N2) , oxygen (O2), carbon dioxide (CO2), hydrogen

sulfide (H2S), and sometimes valuable helium (He) It is used as an industrial and domestic

fuel, and also to make carbon-black and chemical synthesis Natural gas is transported by

large pipelines or (as a liquid) in refrigerated tankers Natural gas is combustible mixture of

hydrocarbon gases, and when burned it gives off a great deal of energy We require energy

constantly, to heat our homes, cook our food, and generate our electricity Unlike other

fossil fuels, however, natural gas is clean burning and emits lower levels of potentially

harmful byproducts into the air It is this need for energy that has elevated natural gas to

such a level of importance in our society, and in our lives

Natural Gas is a vital component of the world's supply of energy It is one of the cleanest,

safest, and most useful of all energy sources Despite its importance, however, there are

many misconceptions about natural gas For instance, the word 'gas' itself has a variety of

different uses, and meanings When we fuel our car, we put 'gas' in it However, the

gasoline that goes into your vehicle, while a fossil fuel itself, is very different from natural

gas The 'gas' in the common barbecue is actually propane, which, while closely associated

and commonly found in natural gas, is not really natural gas itself While commonly

1

Natural Gas2

grouped in with other fossil fuels and sources of energy, there are many characteristics of

natural gas that make it unique Below is a bit of background information about natural gas,

what exactly it is, how it is formed, and how it is found in nature

2.1 History of Natural Gas

Naturally occurring natural gas was discovered and identified in America as early as 1626,

when French explorers discovered natives igniting gases that were seeping into and around

Lake Erie The American natural gas industry got its beginnings in this area In 1859,

Colonel Edwin Drake (a former railroad conductor who adopted the title 'Colonel' to

impress the townspeople) dug the first well Drake hit oil and natural gas at 69 feet below

the surface of the earth

Fig 1 A Reconstruction of ‘Colonel’ Drake’s First Well in Titusville, Pa (Source: API)

Most in the industry characterize this well (Fig.1) as the beginning of the natural gas

industry in America A two-inch diameter pipeline was built, running 5 and ½ miles from

the well to the village of Titusville, Pennsylvania The construction of this pipeline proved

that natural gas could be brought safely and relatively easy from its underground source to

be used for practical purposes

In 1821, the first well specifically intended to obtain natural gas was dug in Fredonia, New

York, by William Hart After noticing gas bubbles rising to the surface of a creek, Hart dug a

27 foot well to try and obtain a larger flow of gas to the surface Hart is regarded by many as

the 'father of natural gas' in America Expanding on Hart's work, the Fredonia Gas Light

Company was eventually formed, becoming the first American natural gas company

In 1885, Robert Bunsen invented what is now known as the Bunsen burner (Fig.2) He

managed to create a device that mixed natural gas with air in the right proportions, creating

a flame that could be safely used for cooking and heating The invention of the Bunsen

burner opened up new opportunities for the use of natural gas in America, and throughout

the world The invention of temperature-regulating thermostatic devices allowed for better use of the heating potential of natural gas, allowing the temperature of the flame to be adjusted and monitored

Fig 2 A Typical Bunsen Burner (Source:DOE) Without any way to transport it effectively, natural gas discovered pre-world war II was usually just allowed to vent into the atmosphere, or burnt, when found alongside coal and oil, or simply left in the ground when found alone

One of the first lengthy pipelines was constructed in 1891 This pipeline was 120 miles long, and carried natural gas from wells in central Indiana to the city of Chicago However, this early pipeline was very rudimentary, and did not transport natural gas efficiently It wasn't until the 1920's that any significant effort was put into building a pipeline infrastructure After World War II welding techniques, pipe rolling, and metallurgical advances allowed for the construction of reliable pipelines This led to a post-war pipeline construction boom lasting well into the 60's, creating thousands of miles of pipeline in America

Once the transportation of natural gas was possible, new uses for natural gas were discovered These included using natural gas to heat homes and operate appliances such as water heaters and oven ranges Industry began to use natural gas in manufacturing and processing plants Also, natural gas was used to heat boilers used to generate electricity The transportation infrastructure made natural gas easier to obtain, and as a result expanded its uses

2.2 How Natural Gas is Formed

Millions of years ago, the remains of plants and animals decayed and built up in thick layers This decayed matter from plants and animals is called organic material –a compound that capable of decay or sometime refers as a compound consists mainly carbon Over time,

grouped in with other fossil fuels and sources of energy, there are many characteristics of

natural gas that make it unique Below is a bit of background information about natural gas,

what exactly it is, how it is formed, and how it is found in nature

2.1 History of Natural Gas

Naturally occurring natural gas was discovered and identified in America as early as 1626,

when French explorers discovered natives igniting gases that were seeping into and around

Lake Erie The American natural gas industry got its beginnings in this area In 1859,

Colonel Edwin Drake (a former railroad conductor who adopted the title 'Colonel' to

impress the townspeople) dug the first well Drake hit oil and natural gas at 69 feet below

the surface of the earth

Fig 1 A Reconstruction of ‘Colonel’ Drake’s First Well in Titusville, Pa (Source: API)

Most in the industry characterize this well (Fig.1) as the beginning of the natural gas

industry in America A two-inch diameter pipeline was built, running 5 and ½ miles from

the well to the village of Titusville, Pennsylvania The construction of this pipeline proved

that natural gas could be brought safely and relatively easy from its underground source to

be used for practical purposes

In 1821, the first well specifically intended to obtain natural gas was dug in Fredonia, New

York, by William Hart After noticing gas bubbles rising to the surface of a creek, Hart dug a

27 foot well to try and obtain a larger flow of gas to the surface Hart is regarded by many as

the 'father of natural gas' in America Expanding on Hart's work, the Fredonia Gas Light

Company was eventually formed, becoming the first American natural gas company

In 1885, Robert Bunsen invented what is now known as the Bunsen burner (Fig.2) He

managed to create a device that mixed natural gas with air in the right proportions, creating

a flame that could be safely used for cooking and heating The invention of the Bunsen

burner opened up new opportunities for the use of natural gas in America, and throughout

the world The invention of temperature-regulating thermostatic devices allowed for better use of the heating potential of natural gas, allowing the temperature of the flame to be adjusted and monitored

Fig 2 A Typical Bunsen Burner (Source:DOE) Without any way to transport it effectively, natural gas discovered pre-world war II was usually just allowed to vent into the atmosphere, or burnt, when found alongside coal and oil, or simply left in the ground when found alone

One of the first lengthy pipelines was constructed in 1891 This pipeline was 120 miles long, and carried natural gas from wells in central Indiana to the city of Chicago However, this early pipeline was very rudimentary, and did not transport natural gas efficiently It wasn't until the 1920's that any significant effort was put into building a pipeline infrastructure After World War II welding techniques, pipe rolling, and metallurgical advances allowed for the construction of reliable pipelines This led to a post-war pipeline construction boom lasting well into the 60's, creating thousands of miles of pipeline in America

Once the transportation of natural gas was possible, new uses for natural gas were discovered These included using natural gas to heat homes and operate appliances such as water heaters and oven ranges Industry began to use natural gas in manufacturing and processing plants Also, natural gas was used to heat boilers used to generate electricity The transportation infrastructure made natural gas easier to obtain, and as a result expanded its uses

2.2 How Natural Gas is Formed

Millions of years ago, the remains of plants and animals decayed and built up in thick layers This decayed matter from plants and animals is called organic material –a compound that capable of decay or sometime refers as a compound consists mainly carbon Over time,

Natural Gas4

the mud and soil changed to rock, covered the organic material and trapped it beneath the

rock Pressure and heat changed some of this organic material into coal, some into oil

(petroleum), and some into natural gas – tiny bubbles of odorless gas The main ingredient

in natural gas is methane, a gas (or compound) composed of one carbon atom and four

hydrogen atoms, CH4 It is colorless, shapeless, and odorless in its pure form

In some places, gas escapes from small gaps in the microscopic plants and animals living in

the ocean rocks into the air; then, if there is enough activation energy from lightning or a

fire, it burns When people first saw the flames, they experimented with them and learned

they could use them for heat and light The formation of natural gas can be explained

starting with microscopic plants and animals living in the ocean

The process began in amillions of years ago, when microscopic plants and animals living in

the ocean absorbed energy from the sun, which was stored as carbon molecules in their

bodies When they died, they sank to the bottom of the sea Over millions of years, layer

after layer of sediment and other plants and bacteria were formed

As they became buried ever deeper, heat and pressure began to rise The amount of pressure

and the degree of heat, along with the type of biomass (biological materials derived from

living organisms), determined if the material became oil or natural gas More heat produced

lighter oil At higher heat or biomass made predominantly of plant material produced

natural gas

After oil and natural gas were formed, they tended to migrate through tiny pores in the

surrounding rock Some oil and natural gas migrated all the way to the surface and escaped

Other oil and natural gas deposits migrated until they were caught under impermeable

layers of rock or clay where they were trapped These trapped deposits are where we find

oil and natural gas wells today where drilling process was conducted to obtain the gas

In a modern technology, machines called "digesters" is used to turn today's organic material

(plants, animal wastes, etc.) into synthetic natural gas (SNG) This replaces waiting for

thousands of years for the gas to form naturally and could overcome the depletion of

natural resources The conventional route for SNG production is based on gasification of

biomass to produce synthesis gas and then the subsequent methanation of the synthesis gas

turn it to synthesis natural gas Woody biomass contain 49.0% carbon and 5.7% hydrogen

that can be converted to 76.8% methane, CH4

2.3 How Natural Gas is Obtained

Now imagine how to obtain the invisible treasure? That's the challenge face by geologist

when exploring for natural gas Sometimes there are clues on the earth's surface An oil

seeps is a possible sign of natural gas below, since oil and gas are sometimes found together

Geologists also have sensitive machines that can "sniff" surface soil and air for small

amounts of natural gas that may have leaked from below ground

The search for natural gas begins with geologists who locate the types of rock that are

known to contain gas and oil deposits Today their tools include seismic surveys that are

used to find the right places to drill wells Seismic surveys use echoes from a vibration

source at the Earth's surface (usually a vibrating pad under a truck built for this purpose) to

collect information about the rocks beneath They send sound waves into the ground and

measure how fast the waves bounce back This tells them how hard and how thick the

different rock layers are underground The data is fed into a computer, which draws a

picture of the rock layers This picture is called a seismogram Sometimes, it is necessary to use small amounts of dynamite to provide the vibration that is needed

The next task are taken by scientists and engineers who explore a chosen area by studying rock samples from the earth and taking measurements If the site seems promising, drilling begins Some of these areas are on land but many are offshore, deep in the ocean Once the gas is found, it flows up through the well to the surface of the ground and into large pipelines Some of the gases that are produced along with methane, such as butane and propane, are separated and the other sour gases such as carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide are cleaned at a gas processing plant (normally called as sweetening process) The by-products, once removed, are used in a number of ways For example, propane and butane can be used for cooking gas

Because natural gas is colorless, odorless and tasteless, mercaptan (a sulfur-containing organic compound with the general formula RSH where R is any radical, especially ethyl mercaptan, C2H5SH) is added before distribution, to give it a distinct unpleasant odor (like that of rotten eggs) This serves as a safety device by allowing it to be detected in the atmosphere, in cases where leaks occur

Most of the natural gas consumed in the United States is produced in the United States Some is imported from Canada and shipped to the United States in pipelines Increasingly natural gas is also being shipped to the United States as liquefied natural gas (LNG)

2.4 How Natural Gas is Stored and Delivered

Natural gas is normally produced far away from the consumption regions, therefore they requires an extensive and elaborate transportation system to reach its point of use The transportation system for natural gas consists of a complex network of pipeline, designed to quickly and efficiently transport natural gas from the origin to areas of high natural gas demand Transportation of natural gas is closely linked with its storage since the demand of the gas is depend on the season

Since natural gas demand is greater in the winter, gas is stored along the way in large underground storage systems, such as old oil and gas wells or caverns formed in old salt beds in western country The gas remains there until it is added back into the pipeline when people begin to use more gas, such as in the winter to heat homes In Malaysia, and other tropical country, gas is supplied throughout the year, therefore it was storage in a large tank

in the processing plant, either in Bintulu, Sarawak, or at Kertih, Terengganu

Three major types of pipeline available along the transportation route, the gathering system, the interstate pipeline and the distribution system The gathering system consists of low pressure, low diameter pipelines that transport raw natural gas from the wellhead to the processing plant In Malaysia, the natural gas is transported from oil rig offshore to the processing plant at Petronas Gas Berhad at Kertih, Terengganu, and Bintulu LNG Tanker, Sarawak Since Malaysia natural gas and other producing country contain high sulfur and carbon dioxide (sour gaseous) it must used specialized sour gas gathering pipe Natural wet gas from the wellhead contain high percentage of water therefore it will react with sour gaseous to form acids, which are extremely corrosive and dangerous, thus its transportation from the wellhead to the sweetening plant must be done carefully The topic will be discussed in depth in the treatment and processing of natural gas

Pipeline can be classified as interstate or intrastate either it carries natural gas across the state boundary (interstate) or within a particular state (intrastate) Natural gas pipelines are

the mud and soil changed to rock, covered the organic material and trapped it beneath the

rock Pressure and heat changed some of this organic material into coal, some into oil

(petroleum), and some into natural gas – tiny bubbles of odorless gas The main ingredient

in natural gas is methane, a gas (or compound) composed of one carbon atom and four

hydrogen atoms, CH4 It is colorless, shapeless, and odorless in its pure form

In some places, gas escapes from small gaps in the microscopic plants and animals living in

the ocean rocks into the air; then, if there is enough activation energy from lightning or a

fire, it burns When people first saw the flames, they experimented with them and learned

they could use them for heat and light The formation of natural gas can be explained

starting with microscopic plants and animals living in the ocean

The process began in amillions of years ago, when microscopic plants and animals living in

the ocean absorbed energy from the sun, which was stored as carbon molecules in their

bodies When they died, they sank to the bottom of the sea Over millions of years, layer

after layer of sediment and other plants and bacteria were formed

As they became buried ever deeper, heat and pressure began to rise The amount of pressure

and the degree of heat, along with the type of biomass (biological materials derived from

living organisms), determined if the material became oil or natural gas More heat produced

lighter oil At higher heat or biomass made predominantly of plant material produced

natural gas

After oil and natural gas were formed, they tended to migrate through tiny pores in the

surrounding rock Some oil and natural gas migrated all the way to the surface and escaped

Other oil and natural gas deposits migrated until they were caught under impermeable

layers of rock or clay where they were trapped These trapped deposits are where we find

oil and natural gas wells today where drilling process was conducted to obtain the gas

In a modern technology, machines called "digesters" is used to turn today's organic material

(plants, animal wastes, etc.) into synthetic natural gas (SNG) This replaces waiting for

thousands of years for the gas to form naturally and could overcome the depletion of

natural resources The conventional route for SNG production is based on gasification of

biomass to produce synthesis gas and then the subsequent methanation of the synthesis gas

turn it to synthesis natural gas Woody biomass contain 49.0% carbon and 5.7% hydrogen

that can be converted to 76.8% methane, CH4

2.3 How Natural Gas is Obtained

Now imagine how to obtain the invisible treasure? That's the challenge face by geologist

when exploring for natural gas Sometimes there are clues on the earth's surface An oil

seeps is a possible sign of natural gas below, since oil and gas are sometimes found together

Geologists also have sensitive machines that can "sniff" surface soil and air for small

amounts of natural gas that may have leaked from below ground

The search for natural gas begins with geologists who locate the types of rock that are

known to contain gas and oil deposits Today their tools include seismic surveys that are

used to find the right places to drill wells Seismic surveys use echoes from a vibration

source at the Earth's surface (usually a vibrating pad under a truck built for this purpose) to

collect information about the rocks beneath They send sound waves into the ground and

measure how fast the waves bounce back This tells them how hard and how thick the

different rock layers are underground The data is fed into a computer, which draws a

picture of the rock layers This picture is called a seismogram Sometimes, it is necessary to use small amounts of dynamite to provide the vibration that is needed

The next task are taken by scientists and engineers who explore a chosen area by studying rock samples from the earth and taking measurements If the site seems promising, drilling begins Some of these areas are on land but many are offshore, deep in the ocean Once the gas is found, it flows up through the well to the surface of the ground and into large pipelines Some of the gases that are produced along with methane, such as butane and propane, are separated and the other sour gases such as carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide are cleaned at a gas processing plant (normally called as sweetening process) The by-products, once removed, are used in a number of ways For example, propane and butane can be used for cooking gas

Because natural gas is colorless, odorless and tasteless, mercaptan (a sulfur-containing organic compound with the general formula RSH where R is any radical, especially ethyl mercaptan, C2H5SH) is added before distribution, to give it a distinct unpleasant odor (like that of rotten eggs) This serves as a safety device by allowing it to be detected in the atmosphere, in cases where leaks occur

Most of the natural gas consumed in the United States is produced in the United States Some is imported from Canada and shipped to the United States in pipelines Increasingly natural gas is also being shipped to the United States as liquefied natural gas (LNG)

2.4 How Natural Gas is Stored and Delivered

Natural gas is normally produced far away from the consumption regions, therefore they requires an extensive and elaborate transportation system to reach its point of use The transportation system for natural gas consists of a complex network of pipeline, designed to quickly and efficiently transport natural gas from the origin to areas of high natural gas demand Transportation of natural gas is closely linked with its storage since the demand of the gas is depend on the season

Since natural gas demand is greater in the winter, gas is stored along the way in large underground storage systems, such as old oil and gas wells or caverns formed in old salt beds in western country The gas remains there until it is added back into the pipeline when people begin to use more gas, such as in the winter to heat homes In Malaysia, and other tropical country, gas is supplied throughout the year, therefore it was storage in a large tank

in the processing plant, either in Bintulu, Sarawak, or at Kertih, Terengganu

Three major types of pipeline available along the transportation route, the gathering system, the interstate pipeline and the distribution system The gathering system consists of low pressure, low diameter pipelines that transport raw natural gas from the wellhead to the processing plant In Malaysia, the natural gas is transported from oil rig offshore to the processing plant at Petronas Gas Berhad at Kertih, Terengganu, and Bintulu LNG Tanker, Sarawak Since Malaysia natural gas and other producing country contain high sulfur and carbon dioxide (sour gaseous) it must used specialized sour gas gathering pipe Natural wet gas from the wellhead contain high percentage of water therefore it will react with sour gaseous to form acids, which are extremely corrosive and dangerous, thus its transportation from the wellhead to the sweetening plant must be done carefully The topic will be discussed in depth in the treatment and processing of natural gas

Pipeline can be classified as interstate or intrastate either it carries natural gas across the state boundary (interstate) or within a particular state (intrastate) Natural gas pipelines are

Natural Gas6

subject to regulatory oversight, which in many ways determines the manner in which

pipeline companies must operate When the gas gets to the communities where it will be

used (usually through large pipelines), the gas is measured as it flows into smaller pipelines

called mains Very small lines, called services, connect to the mains and go directly to homes

or buildings where it will be used This method is used by rich country such as in the United

State, Canada or European country, such as United Kingdom, France etc

The used of pipeline for natural gas delivery is costly, therefore some countries prefer to use

trucks for inland delivery Using this method the natural gas should be liquefied to

minimize the size of the tanker truck In certain country, the natural gas is transported by

trucks tankers to the end users For example in Malaysia the natural gas was transported as

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) using tanker trucks to different state in peninsular of Malaysia

and in East Malaysia The gas was supplied by Petronas Gas Berhad, at Kertih, Terengganu

while in east Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak, the gas was supplied by Bintulu Plant The

natural is exported by large ships equipped with several domed tanks

When chilled to very cold temperatures, approximately -260°F, natural gas changes into a

liquid and can be stored in this form Because it takes up only 1/600th of the space that it

would in its gaseous state, Liquefied natural gas (LNG) can be loaded onto tankers (large

ships with several domed tanks) and moved across the ocean to deliver gas to other

countries When this LNG is received in the United States, it can be shipped by truck to be

held in large chilled tanks close to users or turned back into gas to add to pipelines The

whole process to obtain the natural gas to the end user can be simplified by the diagram

shown in Fig 3

Fig 3 Natural gas industry Image (source: Energy Information Administration, DOE)

2.5 What is the Composition of Natural Gas

Natural gas, in itself, might be considered a very uninteresting gas - it is colorless, shapeless,

and odorless in its pure form Quite uninteresting - except that natural gas is combustible,

and when burned it gives off a great deal of energy Unlike other fossil fuels, however, natural gas is clean burning and emits lower levels of potentially harmful byproducts into the air We require energy constantly, to heat our homes, cook our food, and generate our electricity It is this need for energy that has elevated natural gas to such a level of importance in our society, and in our lives

Natural gas is a combustible mixture of hydrocarbon gases While natural gas is formed primarily of methane, it can also include ethane, propane, butane and pentane The composition of natural gas can vary widely, but below is a chart outlining the typical makeup of natural gas before it is refined

Table 1 Typical composition of Natural Gas

In its purest form, such as the natural gas that is delivered to your home, it is almost pure methane Methane is a molecule made up of one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms, and is referred to as CH4 Malaysia producing sour natural gas Before purification process, Malaysia’s natural gas is consists of several gaseous and impurities The chemical composition of Malaysia natural gas before it is being refined is shown in Table 2

Table 2 Chemical composition in crude natural gas provided by Bergading Platform offshore of Terengganu, Malaysia

Rare gases A, He, Ne, Xe trace

subject to regulatory oversight, which in many ways determines the manner in which

pipeline companies must operate When the gas gets to the communities where it will be

used (usually through large pipelines), the gas is measured as it flows into smaller pipelines

called mains Very small lines, called services, connect to the mains and go directly to homes

or buildings where it will be used This method is used by rich country such as in the United

State, Canada or European country, such as United Kingdom, France etc

The used of pipeline for natural gas delivery is costly, therefore some countries prefer to use

trucks for inland delivery Using this method the natural gas should be liquefied to

minimize the size of the tanker truck In certain country, the natural gas is transported by

trucks tankers to the end users For example in Malaysia the natural gas was transported as

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) using tanker trucks to different state in peninsular of Malaysia

and in East Malaysia The gas was supplied by Petronas Gas Berhad, at Kertih, Terengganu

while in east Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak, the gas was supplied by Bintulu Plant The

natural is exported by large ships equipped with several domed tanks

When chilled to very cold temperatures, approximately -260°F, natural gas changes into a

liquid and can be stored in this form Because it takes up only 1/600th of the space that it

would in its gaseous state, Liquefied natural gas (LNG) can be loaded onto tankers (large

ships with several domed tanks) and moved across the ocean to deliver gas to other

countries When this LNG is received in the United States, it can be shipped by truck to be

held in large chilled tanks close to users or turned back into gas to add to pipelines The

whole process to obtain the natural gas to the end user can be simplified by the diagram

shown in Fig 3

Fig 3 Natural gas industry Image (source: Energy Information Administration, DOE)

2.5 What is the Composition of Natural Gas

Natural gas, in itself, might be considered a very uninteresting gas - it is colorless, shapeless,

and odorless in its pure form Quite uninteresting - except that natural gas is combustible,

and when burned it gives off a great deal of energy Unlike other fossil fuels, however, natural gas is clean burning and emits lower levels of potentially harmful byproducts into the air We require energy constantly, to heat our homes, cook our food, and generate our electricity It is this need for energy that has elevated natural gas to such a level of importance in our society, and in our lives

Natural gas is a combustible mixture of hydrocarbon gases While natural gas is formed primarily of methane, it can also include ethane, propane, butane and pentane The composition of natural gas can vary widely, but below is a chart outlining the typical makeup of natural gas before it is refined

Table 1 Typical composition of Natural Gas

In its purest form, such as the natural gas that is delivered to your home, it is almost pure methane Methane is a molecule made up of one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms, and is referred to as CH4 Malaysia producing sour natural gas Before purification process, Malaysia’s natural gas is consists of several gaseous and impurities The chemical composition of Malaysia natural gas before it is being refined is shown in Table 2

Table 2 Chemical composition in crude natural gas provided by Bergading Platform offshore of Terengganu, Malaysia

Rare gases A, He, Ne, Xe trace

Natural Gas8

2.6 How Much Natural Gas is there

There is an abundance of natural gas in North America, but it is a non-renewable resource,

the formation of which takes thousands and possibly millions of years Therefore,

understanding the availability of our supply of natural gas is important as we increase our

use of this fossil fuel This section will provide a framework for understanding just how

much natural gas there is in the ground available for our use, as well as links to the most

recent statistics concerning the available supply of natural gas

As natural gas is essentially irreplaceable (at least with current technology), it is important

to have an idea of how much natural gas is left in the ground for us to use However, this

becomes complicated by the fact that no one really knows exactly how much natural gas

exists until it is extracted Measuring natural gas in the ground is no easy job, and it involves

a great deal of inference and estimation With new technologies, these estimates are

becoming more and more reliable; however, they are still subject to revision

Table 3 Natural Gas Technically Recoverable Resources (Source: Energy Information

Administration - Annual Energy Outlook 2009)

A common misconception about natural gas is that we are running out, and quickly

However, this couldn't be further from the truth Many people believe that price spikes, seen

in the 1970's, and more recently in the winter of 2000, indicate that we are running out of

natural gas The two aforementioned periods of high prices were not caused by waning

natural gas resources - rather, there were other forces at work in the marketplace In fact,

there is a vast amount of natural gas estimated to still be in the ground In order to understand exactly what these estimates mean, and their importance, it is useful first to learn a bit of industry terminology for the different types of estimates

The EIA provides classification system for natural gas resources Unconventional natural gas reservoirs are also extremely important to the nation's supply of natural gas

Below are three estimates of natural gas reserves in the United States The first (Table 3), compiled by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), estimates that there are 1,747.47 Tcf of technically recoverable natural gas in the United States This includes undiscovered, unproved, and unconventional natural gas As seen from the table, proved reserves make

up a very small proportion of the total recoverable natural gas resources in the U.S

The following table includes an estimate of natural gas resources compiled by the National Petroleum Council (NPC) in 1999 in its report Natural Gas - Meeting the Challenges of the Nation's Growing Natural Gas Demand This estimate places U.S natural gas resources higher than the EIA, at 1,779 Tcf remaining It is important to note that different methodologies and systems of classification are used in various estimates that are completed There is no single way that every industry player quantifies estimates of natural gas Therefore, it is important to delve into the assumptions and methodology behind each study to gain a complete understanding of the estimate itself

Table 4 U.S Natural Gas Resources (Trillion Cubic Feet) ( Source: National Petroleum Council - Meeting the Challenges of the Nation's Growing Natural Gas Demand, 2007)

As of Jan 1, 1991 As of Jan 1, 1998

Proved Reserves 160 157 Assessed Additional Resources 1135 1309 Old Fields (Reserve Appreciation) 236 305 New Fields 493 633 Nonconventional 406 371

Proved Reserves 9 10 Assessed Additonal Resources 171 303 Old Fields (Reserve Appreciation) 30 32 New Fields 84 214 Nonconventional 57 57

2.6 How Much Natural Gas is there

There is an abundance of natural gas in North America, but it is a non-renewable resource,

the formation of which takes thousands and possibly millions of years Therefore,

understanding the availability of our supply of natural gas is important as we increase our

use of this fossil fuel This section will provide a framework for understanding just how

much natural gas there is in the ground available for our use, as well as links to the most

recent statistics concerning the available supply of natural gas

As natural gas is essentially irreplaceable (at least with current technology), it is important

to have an idea of how much natural gas is left in the ground for us to use However, this

becomes complicated by the fact that no one really knows exactly how much natural gas

exists until it is extracted Measuring natural gas in the ground is no easy job, and it involves

a great deal of inference and estimation With new technologies, these estimates are

becoming more and more reliable; however, they are still subject to revision

Table 3 Natural Gas Technically Recoverable Resources (Source: Energy Information

Administration - Annual Energy Outlook 2009)

A common misconception about natural gas is that we are running out, and quickly

However, this couldn't be further from the truth Many people believe that price spikes, seen

in the 1970's, and more recently in the winter of 2000, indicate that we are running out of

natural gas The two aforementioned periods of high prices were not caused by waning

natural gas resources - rather, there were other forces at work in the marketplace In fact,

there is a vast amount of natural gas estimated to still be in the ground In order to understand exactly what these estimates mean, and their importance, it is useful first to learn a bit of industry terminology for the different types of estimates

The EIA provides classification system for natural gas resources Unconventional natural gas reservoirs are also extremely important to the nation's supply of natural gas

Below are three estimates of natural gas reserves in the United States The first (Table 3), compiled by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), estimates that there are 1,747.47 Tcf of technically recoverable natural gas in the United States This includes undiscovered, unproved, and unconventional natural gas As seen from the table, proved reserves make

up a very small proportion of the total recoverable natural gas resources in the U.S

The following table includes an estimate of natural gas resources compiled by the National Petroleum Council (NPC) in 1999 in its report Natural Gas - Meeting the Challenges of the Nation's Growing Natural Gas Demand This estimate places U.S natural gas resources higher than the EIA, at 1,779 Tcf remaining It is important to note that different methodologies and systems of classification are used in various estimates that are completed There is no single way that every industry player quantifies estimates of natural gas Therefore, it is important to delve into the assumptions and methodology behind each study to gain a complete understanding of the estimate itself

Table 4 U.S Natural Gas Resources (Trillion Cubic Feet) ( Source: National Petroleum Council - Meeting the Challenges of the Nation's Growing Natural Gas Demand, 2007)

As of Jan 1, 1991 As of Jan 1, 1998

Proved Reserves 160 157 Assessed Additional Resources 1135 1309 Old Fields (Reserve Appreciation) 236 305 New Fields 493 633 Nonconventional 406 371

Proved Reserves 9 10 Assessed Additonal Resources 171 303 Old Fields (Reserve Appreciation) 30 32 New Fields 84 214 Nonconventional 57 57

Natural Gas10

Below (Table 5) is a third estimate completed by the Potential Gas Committee This estimate

places total U.S natural gas resources at just over 1,836 Tcf This estimate classifies natural

gas resources into three categories: probable resources, possible resources, and speculative

resources, which are added together to reach a total potential resource estimate Only this

total is shown below

Table 5 Potential Natural Gas Resources of the U.S (Trillion Cubic Feet) (Source: Potential

Gas Committee - Potential Supply of Natural Gas in the United States, 2009)

There are a myriad of different industry participants that formulate their own estimates

regarding natural gas supplies, such as production companies, independent geologists, the

government, and environmental groups, to name a few While this leads to a wealth of

information, it also leads to a number of difficulties Each estimate is based on a different set

of assumptions, completed with different tools, and even referred to with different

language It is thus difficult to get a definitive answer to the question of how much natural

gas exists In addition, since these are all essentially educated guesses as to the amount of

natural gas in the earth, there are constant revisions being made New technology,

combined with increased knowledge of particular areas and reservoirs mean that these

estimates are in a constant state of flux Further complicating the scenario is the fact that

there are no universally accepted definitions for the terms that are used differently by

geologists, engineers, accountants, and others

Natural gas has been discovered on all continents except Antarctica World natural gas

reserves total approximately 150 trillion cu m (5.3 quadrillion cu ft) The world's largest

natural gas reserves, totaling, 50 trillion cu m (1.9 quadrillion cu ft) are located in

Russia The second-largest reserves, 48 trillion cu m (1.7 quadrillion cu ft), are found in

the Middle East Vast deposits are also located in other parts of Asia, in Africa, and in

Australia Natural gas reserves in the United States total 5 trillion cu m (177 trillion cu ft)

In Asia-Oceania, natural gas reserves total 12.6 trillion cu m (Table 6) Malaysia has the

14th largest gas reserves as at January 2008 As at January 2008, Malaysia's gas reserves stood at 88.0 trillion standard cubic feet (tscf) or 14.67 billion barrels of oil equivalent, approximately three times the size of crude oil reserves of 5.46 billion barrels

Table 6 Proven reserves and Annual production, Asia-Oceania (Taken from BP Statistical Review, 2003)

Most of this gas reserves are located at offshore Peninsular Malaysia, Sarawak and Sabah The Malaysian natural gas reserves are as shown in Figure 4 [4]

Fig 4 Malaysian Natural Gas Reserve (Taken from Oil and Gas Exploration and

Production-Reserves, Costs, Contract, 2004) Currently, Malaysia is a net exporter of natural gas and is the third largest exporter after Algeria and Indonesia In 2001, the country exported 49.7% of its natural gas production to the Republic of Korea and Taiwan under long-term contracts The other 50.3% of Malaysia natural gas was delivered to the gas processing plants

Proven reserves (Tm3)

Annual production (Gm3)

Reserve to product (years)

Australia 2.5 34.5 72.5 China 1.5 32.6 46.0 India 0.8 28.4 28.2 Indonesia 2.6 70.6 36.8 Malaysia 2.1 50.3 41.8 Others 3.1 85.3 36.3